Graphics

Right... so I realize at the outset that I may not be able to provide enough information to get a cogent answer, but I have to try anyway...

I was just handed an XPression project file (actually made by the good folks at Ross) for a U-Bar element. The project is broken down into a lot of separate pieces, but my focus is on the 3 panels which span the lower third of the screen making the 'bottom' of the U.

Each of these panels are on separate layers, and I have been able to call them up in sequencer and see them, BUT when I look at the same scene in Layout, it's blank... no preview at all. There are of course NUMEROUS objects, and a 17 scene directors, each one with several 'script' tags scattered across their tracks, apart from the director designated as the 'preview' which is empty. I have tried evoking different directors and scrubbing to see if I could get something... anything really to appear, but no dice.

So is there anything generally speaking, to take into consideration when dealing with such a project? Obviously, I have to be able to see and interact with these things in layout mode if I am to affect any change. Any advice welcome.

Cheers
- Willie

Hi Willie,
Might be best to reach out to the Ross Video Rocket Surgery Designer who created the project to get an explanation of how the project works.

It sounds like you have a scene that is heavy in Transition Logic. I would start off by looking at the Transition Logic tab of the scene object and looking for a Rule called In or In/Out or something similar. Then in the In/Out tab of that rule look and see what scene director has been assigned for "If Rule Is True - In:".
Then trying opening up the scene director that is selected there and scrubbing that one. Once you get the objects to animate in the other other scene directors should start working more, as the objects will be visible.

Make sure you've turned on Show/Hide continuous animations as well.
#XPression

Well, strangely, without doing anything the elements are now visible, after reselecting the scene a couple of times. I wonder if there is a version discrepancy? And, yes based on the layout of things in sequencer, it definitely appears to be heavy in TL, though the specific 3 scenes which are my focus have no rules or conditions present in their TL tabs (although that will be changing).

We do plan to have a call tomorrow with the project manager and the designer who originally built these elements. I am merely tasked today with poking around the file, getting my feet wet, and preparing questions for said call. The I hit this roadblock, and then the roadblock mysteriously vanished.

It's worth pointing out the first couple of times I took the elements online in sequencer they didn't appear either, and then on the 3rd or 4th try, they did...
#XPression